Amazon.com IncAmazon Data Services buys GW's campus for data center development, expanding its capacity.

American universities are selling property to data center developers, sparking concerns that the AI boom is cannibalizing higher education resources. George Washington University sold its 120-acre Virginia Science and Technology Campus in Ashburn to Amazon Data Services for $427 million, while the University of Michigan is pursuing a $1.25 billion high-performance computing and research center in Ypsilanti Township. Former GW professor Ellen Scully-Russ said the sale reflects a broader land grab by data centers and criticized the lack of transparency, noting faculty and students were not informed in advance. GW said the sale strengthens its finances and will fund a new endowment, with eligible staff receiving one-time bonuses. Michigan’s project, a specialized research hub rather than a commercial data center, has drawn unanimous opposition from the Ypsilanti Township Board of Trustees.
Amazon.com IncAmazon Data Services buys GW's campus for data center development, expanding its capacity.